For any company, a CV is the face of the jobseeker and the initial selection is based on it. A well-written CV is the key to success and the chance of getting into the company you want to work for and earn money for. But what happens if you have sent your CV and there is no answer? And so many, many times.

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In this article we will show you typical mistakes in the CVs of translators who are not selected by the agency:

1. not wanting to write and send a resume

There are times when a person just doesn’t want to put together a resume and states this over the phone. «I’ll tell you everything over the phone», declares such a job seeker. The fact is that practically every company has several stages of employee selection: the CV screening stage is one of them. In addition, we assume that each modern person should already have a resume which reflects his or her actual work experience, his or her literacy and motivation. In the next stages applicants are invited to come in for an interview. A telephone interview makes no sense: the employer cannot see you, he cannot remember all the facts about you and furthermore he might be very busy at that particular moment and you want to take 15-20 minutes of his time without his agreement.

Tip: You should always have a CV. Preferably with a photo.

Mistakes of all kinds: typos, grammar and syntax errors

They can tell you a lot, especially considering the fact that we employ linguists and translators who need to be competent in writing. Moreover, we understand that a person writing a resume has to read it 10 times and correct mistakes. Often a person’s illiteracy begins at the writing stage of a resume.  What good would it do us to consider this person if we will inevitably find a lot of mistakes in his future translations.

Tip: Once you have written your CV, read it over 10 times or, even better, let a friend or relative read it to you to get your career off to a good start. Remember: a CV is your face.

3. A lack of experience or previous jobs outside your field

If you graduated with a degree in languages 10 years ago and worked as a hairdresser, rest assured that your translation skills are long gone. Working as a translator requires a fresh knowledge of the language, constant development of the translator, keeping up with the latest trends in the translation industry and learning new software. Clients are very picky about the quality of translations, so such resumes go unnoticed.

A word of advice: always do what you are good at. A superficial knowledge of the language is not enough to do translations.

4. Inappropriate photo

Sometimes job-seekers put photos in their resumes that are off-topic. For example, highly provocative, or with a friend, pet kitty, a very poor quality «bathrobe» photo, and so on. A good thing for you is to put a business-looking photo in your CV. If you don’t have one, a passport photo will do. At the worst, don’t include any photos.

Tip: A photo can be repellent. Always choose your resume photo carefully.

5. Lies and inconsistencies on your resume

Many of the facts in a CV are impossible to verify, but job seekers with no experience use their imagination. For example, «I work as a freelancer through proz.com,» but a search of the site doesn’t turn up such a resume. Or worked as a translator at such-and-such an exhibition in such-and-such a year. A quick Internet search reveals that the fair was held in a different year. We value motivation in resumes! Even if you have no experience, a well-formatted resume with a cover letter and a good motivation we will still contact you to check your qualifications.

A word of advice: Never put any untrue facts on your CV. Rather keep it modest, but realistic. You might do yourself a disservice by thinking it might not be the right job for you. So why waste your time?

6. Frequent job changes, short periods of work in similar companies

We are always interested in employees who can keep a job for at least 1 or 2 years. If you work for 2 months in one office, then 3 months in another one, it makes you very suspicious. If an employee is valuable in a company, they try to retain them, train them well and provide them with good working conditions. Frequent job changes can be an indication that a person is conflicted and unwilling to accept the pros and cons of their job, and it can also be an indication that they are incompetent.

Tip: If for any reason you have had to change several jobs in a short period of time, briefly describe the reason for leaving each job.

Your CV should be concise, honest, and literate. When an employer reads your CV, they need to know that they need people like you. Your CV is your calling card and an express interview. We hope that this article will help all job seekers avoid silly mistakes in their CVs or finally understand why you never get a call back.

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